The Islamic sect, which started in India in the late 1920s, has been accused in the past of radicalising young Muslims.

In 2008, Newham councillor and Christian Choice candidate for mayor of London, Alan Craig, complained he had been prevented by the BBC from describing it as a "separatist Islamic group" in a party political broadcast.

The group itself has said it "refrains from political or controversial activities and stands for democracy and freedom" and that it "promotes social and religious integration".

The mosque - first mooted in 2007 - would take up three times the floor space of St Paul's Cathedral.

Since Tablighi Jamaat moved into the Abbey Mills site in 1996, it has become embroiled in a series of application and enforcement disputes with Newham Council.